Bryant Signs Extension with LA

Chris Graythen/Getty Images(LOS ANGELES, Calif.) -- The Los Angeles Lakers agreed to terms with guard Kobe Bryant on a two-year extension on Monday. The deal, worth a reported $48.5 million, will keep Bryant in L.A. until the end of the 2015-16 season.

Bryant has not played a game yet this season as he is still recovering from surgery to repair a torn Achilles suffered in April. The 2008 league MVP would have been a free agent in 2014 but instead will retain his title as the highest-paid player in the NBA.

In a statement released to the media, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak said that the team’s main priority was “to have Kobe finish his career as a Laker, and this should ensure that happens.”

The 35-year-old Bryant has won five championships and is entering his 18th season in the league. The Lakers are 7-7 to start the year.